Woman speaks out after her dog was 'attacked' by homeless man's dog

A woman has thanked the support of others after her dog was victim to a “traumatic” attack by a homeless man's dog. On Tuesday (April 15), Maria Ward was spending the day in Brighton with her 15-month-old mini American shepherd, Marley. In the afternoon, the pair were walking down North Street when Marley was attacked by another dog.

Ms Ward described how the "big dog" escaped from its owner, who was asleep. She said: “I was walking along the high street, my dog was on a lead, when ahead I saw the big dog. “It was sat with its owner, who was a homeless man, who I noticed was asleep.



Suddenly, his dog turned and looked at my dog and then started to run. “It grabbed onto Marley’s neck and pulled him away from me. I follow a few dog trainers, so I knew I needed to try and grab the dog by the collar and twist it.

” Read more: Several police cars spotted on seafront Eventually the dog let go and Marley was freed. A bystander also called the police, who attended the scene. Marley, a mini American Shepherd (Image: Maria Ward) Ms Ward said: “The whole thing probably only lasted a minute, but it felt like forever.

“But I think the collar broke and I just scooped up Marley and legged into the nearest open door which was Burger King. I just started crying.” The 43-year-old thanked the kindness of strangers who supported her throughout the incident.

She said: “I was screaming for help and there were so many kind people who stopped. "People who didn’t even know us put their life at danger. There were so many sweet people checking we were okay.

“I just want to thank everyone who stopped and stayed with us. It was really selfless.” Due to Marley’s thick fur, this provided enough protection that he was not injured from the attack.

Ms Ward told The Argus how Marley remains a sociable dog but explained the lasting impact this incident has had on her. She said: “Thankfully after about thirty minutes Marley was all over the police officers, licking them and still wanting to play. “I’m the one left with the traumatic effect, I really thought he would be mauled to death.

” Sussex Police have been approached for comment..